News

The recent school shooting in Florida is a horrible reminder that our worst nightmare is happening more and more. As we move forward through our fear for our own children and grief for families at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, I wanted to share what VUSD has and will continue to do to address school safety.

School violence is a complex issue. As a district we have worked to identify the aspects of school violence beyond legislation that we can directly control and impact in our schools.

As adults, the action that we can take today which serves as the foundation for a positive school climate is helping students understand the importance of respect, compassion, understanding and support of each other; face to face, on social media, at school and at home. We can model this behavior and help students look for understanding of each other. Our schools serve students with a wide range of emotional, physical and intellectual needs and it is important that we foster a culture that is inclusive of everyone. Sometimes behaviors we witness are misunderstood or present an opportunity to provide a student with needed support. However, consistent and understood consequences for students who choose to threaten, demean or bully others at school or online is also key.

A consistent and clear emergency response plan is also vital in keeping our students safe and addressing any potential threat on campus. We are in our fourth year of practicing the Standard Response Protocols (Lockdown, Lockout, Evacuate, Shelter). This plan was developed with guidance from the Vacaville Police Department. Vacaville PD is at the center of all our emergency responses and their expertise and support has been invaluable. A police sergeant and four school resource police officers are based on school campuses and serve all of our schools with safety and crime issues. Our emergency plan also includes monthly drills for students and staff as well as trainings for parents. I invite you to attend our next parent-training event on February 27th at 5:30 PM at 401 Nut Tree Road.

Our 2017-18 educational plan (LCAP) has also included funding and programing to systemically address social and emotional wellness for students. Each school has adopted systems of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) that include teaching positive behaviors and offering a wide range of supports to fit each individual student’s needs. This includes sixteen mental health clinicians, therapists, and interns, school counselors, deans at secondary schools and school administration. The City of Vacaville also has a community service officer, two master social workers, family support workers and program managers who work to serve and support VUSD students as well.

Positive school climate and safety is an ongoing effort that must be the highest priority for the school district, parents, students, city and our community. Supporting students positively as they grow not only effects our school environment but our city as a whole.

If you have any questions or concerns about safety, please reach out to your school principal, district administration listed below or myself.

School shootings are a terrifying thought for every parent and educator. Student safety is always in the forefront for us as a community. Given yesterday's tragic events in Florida, we thought we would share the following upcoming events that are part of our annual calendar to address school safety.
The first is our district wide Emergency Operations Center Training on February 27th that includes all of our schools and departments in executing an EOC with the focus on the logistics of keeping our students safe and accounted for in a disaster.

The second is an informational meeting for parents, reviewing our Standard Response Protocols as well as our Standard Reunification Method Protocols, also on February 27th from 5:30-7:00 PM in the Educational Services Center Board Room at 401 Nut Tree Road.

Finally, March 15th is our annual district-wide school Lockdown Drill. The drills will be happening throughout the day at every school site. Each site creates a different scenario to practice each year, for example a school might elect to trigger the drill during passing period or recess rather than in the classroom so that students can practice the procedures under various circumstances.

The Vacaville Police Department is an integral partner in keeping our kids safe. All of our protocols are created in collaboration with VPD. More information about VUSD's emergency response protocols can be found at http://www.vacavilleusd.org/SRP. Please feel free to contact Jennifer Leonard at (707)453-6155 with any questions or comments.

The Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP) connects the funding we receive to the goals we’ve established, and it outlines the ways we measure progress. Parent/guardian input is a critical component to the plan. Academic success for each student requires a collaborative partnership between parents/guardians and schools.

Please take a few moments to share your feedback and priorities with us by completing one survey for each school your student(s) attend(s). (2 surveys for 2 different schools, etc.)

Kaiser Permanente offers unique and dynamic health care internship programs that provide interns with practical job skills and experiences in a supportive environment. Our goal is to bring students into the KP LAUNCH program for exposure to various business and healthcare careers.

If you are interested and qualified for this program, please log onto to our website (https://kplaunch.kaiserpermanente.org/ ) to apply during our application period between Monday, February 5, 2018 at 9 a.m. and Sunday, February 18, 2018 by 6 p.m.

Join the January Special Education Parent Meeting supporting student success through equitable access, collaboration and empowerment.

Come and listen to information from guest speaker officer Jeremy Johnson of the Vacaville Police Department regarding the “Puzzle Project”. This project started by officer Johnson is slated to strengthen ties between the police and the special needs community.

Gill Van Attenhoven, an attorney and the Director of Training for the California Narcotic Officers Association will be giving a “don't miss “presentation about opioids and other drugs. Vacaville Police Sergeant Todd Dye, will also be speaking about opioid and drug use in Vacaville.
High school students, parents and community members are encouraged to attend to help raise awareness regarding opioids and other drugs that are killing children.

VUSD PARENT/GUARDIAN INFORMATION EVENT

January 25, 2018 @ 6:00 - 7:30 pm 401 Nut Tree Road, Vacaville

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

The California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) is the largest statewide survey of resiliency, protective factors, and risk behaviors in the nation. Students in grades 5, 7, 9 and 11 will be participating in the California Healthy Kids Survey between November 27 - December 21, 2017. Parent information and consent forms will be sent home in November. Click here for more information.

As a follow up and response to the concerning incident this morning involving the arrest of a near a bus transit station, please see the update below. As always, we encourage parents to help students understand how to be aware of their surroundings, not engage with strangers and immediately tell adults about strange or threatening incidents. We appreciate the immediate action and support from Vacaville PD, and are glad that the suspect was identified.

THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE HAS BEEN POSTED BY THE VACAVILLE POLICE DEPARTMENT:

Two teenaged girls are to be commended for their quick thinking and actions yesterday, which have now led to the arrest of 29-year-old Vacaville resident Newton Payeah.

Yesterday morning while waiting for a bus at the Vacaville Transit Center on E. Monte Vista Avenue, Payeah approached two girls who were waiting for a bus to take them to school. He asked them if they would like to smoke marijuana with him and offered to give them a ride, identifying himself as an Uber driver. These brave young ladies did the right thing by not engaging him further and got on their bus when it arrived. They then reported what happened to an adult which resulted in police being called.

Our children's safety is extremely important to us and we immediately launched an investigation as to what occurred. Information was being shared on other social media platforms that in some situations was not correct. We want you to know we are committed to providing you information that is timely, accurate, and direct from the source on our social media platforms and sometimes that takes a little longer than we all may want, however this ensures accuracy in what's shared. Officers from our Youth Services Section were actively following up on the case when we learned Payeah returned to the transit center this morning. Officers immediately responded and safely took Payeah into custody. We were able to determine he does not work for Uber as a driver. Payeah was arrested for annoying a child under the age of 18 and booked into Solano County Jail. Below is a picture of Payeah at the time of his arrest and the car he arrived in.

This situation could have ended much different if not for the excellent decisions made by the girls. Please use this event to have those important conversations with your children about how to handle themselves should they ever be in similar circumstances.

Matt Jackson teaches Integrated Math 1, Business Math, and Mass Media at Country High School. He is a bucket of positive energy getting his students excited and engaged in the world of Math. He helps students who have typically been frustrated with math develop a growth mindset where they can think about things in a different way. Not only does he work hard to develop engaging math lessons with real world applications but he has also taken on a new class, Mass Media. On top of all his hard work at CHS, he also teaches math courses at Kimmie Charter School for Independent Learners. To say that he is a busy man is an understatement but you would never know by the positive presence he puts out on a daily basis. Thanks for all you do for VUSD students Matt!

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

Duck, cover and hold. All VUSD schools will be practicing earthquake drills at 10:19 AM today. This is a great opportunity for families to review their emergency supplies and plans too. What's your family plan? http://www.earthquakecountry.org/step5/

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

Based upon information available Sunday, October 15th, all VUSD schools and offices will be open on a regular schedule Monday, October 16th.

Currently, there are no plans to make up days for school closures. However, Super Saturdays are a great way for students to get additional help. The next Super Saturday is October 21st. Details are available at your school.

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

ALL VUSD SCHOOLS WILL BE CLOSED THURSDAY, OCT. 12th and FRIDAY OCT. 13th.

Hello VUSD Families,

We hope this message finds your families safe and well. Our hearts go out to those who have been evacuated or have lost loved ones, pets and homes in this tragedy. Thank you for your support as we work through the challenges of this disaster.

Because the evacuation areas in Solano County have increased, affecting even more VUSD families and staff and the air quality is now at hazardous levels, all VUSD schools and offices will be closed on Thursday October 12th and Friday October 13th. Thank you for your understanding as we navigate this emergency. Take care and stay safe.

VUSD schools will be open today with measures being taken to reduce smoke exposure for staff and students. Students who stay home with parental permission due to poor air quality will have excused absences.

“Our thoughts go out to our Fairfield/Napa/Sonoma neighbors and staff who are dealing with evacuations and tragedy. We understand that many VUSD parents cannot get time off for poor air quality and cancelling school creates childcare and income challenges for many. Keeping schools open, but excusing absences for those who choose to keep students home is the best way we can support our families during this tragedy while maintaining educational continuity.” VUSD Superintendent Jane Shamieh.

As you probably remember, VUSD has been evaluating our school start times with the intent to create optimal learning environments for our students. Significant research shows that the circadian rhythm (or sleep cycle) for humans changes during the adolescent years. While young children typically are naturally wide awake early in the morning, teens biologically struggle with waking early, regardless of the time they go to sleep. Research shows that aligning school start times to better fit students' biological rhythms results in improved student performance and success.

VUSD has been evaluating school start times for over two years. This evaluation included:

reviewing extensive research

recommendations from health organizations like the National Sleep Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control, and the American Academy of Pediatrics

school district transportation

cost analysis

feedback from principals

polls for students, parents and teachers

The VUSD Board of Trustees have taken all of these into careful consideration and have voted to adjust school start times for the 2018-19 school year. In the year to come, we will work with VUSD staff, City Coach, athletics, Vacaville Police and Fire and other community organizations in preparation of these new times. We understand that this positive change for student learning requires some adjustments for our families and community partners. We appreciate yourwillingness to work with us in fitting our educational system to meet students' needs.

Join us at Special Education Parent Night Wednesday, September 27th from 6:00-7:30 PM at Orchard Elementary. Meet other families, the special education leadership team and our special needs parent liaison.

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

City to open two cooling centers beginning Friday evening. Excessive heat warning issued by National Weather Service. With temperatures expected to reach well into the 100s over this Labor Day weekend, the City of Vacaville will be opening cooling centers at two of its community centers.

The National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning for our area and other parts of Northern California. As a result, the Three Oaks Community Center will have a cooling center in one of its assembly rooms. Three Oaks, which is located at 1100 Alamo Drive, will be open until 8:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

On August 21 all of America will experience a solar eclipse. Some areas will witness a total eclipse (when the moon entirely covers the sun); other regions will witness a partial eclipse.

The Bay Area will experience a 76% eclipse, with the moon beginning to cover the sun at 9:01 am, reaching maximum coverage at 10:15 am, and then moving away from the sun at 11:37 am.

Some schools have made plans for students to go outside and watch the eclipse using special solar eclipse glasses and/or cards for pinhole viewing. Please check your school's website to see what kinds of activities are planned.

If you want to send your child to school with glasses for viewing the eclipse, please be sure to provide designated solar eclipse glasses. Staring at even a sliver of the sun without adequate protection can cause permanent eye damage. (You can find more information about choosing safe glasses on the American Astronomical Society's website.)

The following websites have lots of layperson-friendly eclipse information to share with your families and friends:

Cal Eclipse: "Do Your Thing for the Sun" (a guide to ways that community members can reduce energy usage during the eclipse in order to avoid making power plants switch to natural gas while solar energy is unavailable)

Kaiser Permanente in Vacaville is hosting a Community Health and Sport Fair August 5th, 2017 from 9:00am-12:00pm at 1 Quality DR., Vacaville. The event hosts sports exams and immunizations for Kaiser members as well as community activities for parents, students and coaches. Admission is free.

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

May is Mental Health Month. The intent of this observance is to bring awareness to growing mental health needs within our culture, and to fight the stigma associated with mental illness. The Netflix series “13 Reasons Why” has brought national and local attention to issues related to mental illness and suicide. Please take an opportunity to discuss the attached talking points with your children. We need to work together to spread the message to our children that help is always available.

We can never be too careful when it comes to protecting our children. A dangerous “game” surfaced on social media a while back, particularly with students in other countries. The game is being talked about by student in our schools.

The “Blue Whale Challenge” app involves the enticement of students into risky behavior that could result in the final challenge of taking one’s life. While we do not know of any VUSD students who are playing it, we want to make sure that you are aware of it.

Evidently, it has been removed from the app store. We are appreciative of members of the community who brought this to our attention; our children benefit when we work together to protect them.

Sincerely,

Kim Forrest

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

Race registration and packet pickup today at Fleet Feet Vacaville from 12-6 PM, and tomorrow from 6:30-8:00AM at Lagoon Valley! Remember half of your registration fee goes back to the school of choice.

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

Papa Roach -- a world-touring, Grammy-nominated, triple-platinum rock band with members who originally hail from Vacaville – will break away from their album promotion schedule on May 3 to come home to deliver a message to Solano County children: Be fearless, dream big, aim high to develop your full creative potential.

Members of the band will return to their hometown for a special dedication ceremony at Imagine That! – Vacaville’s newly opened hands-on learning Exploratorium for children of all ages and abilities. Exhibits at the center encourage children to be free to imagine, create, and welcome sciences and art into their lives.

The highlight of this special ceremony will be Vacaville Mayor Len Augustine proclaiming May 3 as Papa Roach Day in Vacaville. In honor of Papa Roach’s generous support of our community, organizers have created a special exhibit at the center that celebrates their musical success. One portion of the exhibit invites youngsters to play out their rock dreams and musical talents.

Papa Roach formed in 1993, with Jacoby Shaddix, a student at Vacaville High, and Jerry Horton of Vanden High, since that time and with Members Tobin Esperance and Tony Palermo, Papa Roach have achieved critical and commercial acclaim selling over 25 million albums worldwide.

The dedication will take place from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 3 at Vacaville’s Imagine That!, 848-B Alamo Drive.

The Ernest Kimme Charter Academy for Independent Learning will be hosting an open house April 6th at 6:00 PM. The evening will include tours, food, raffle prizes, virtual reality demonstrations and more! The Ernest Kimme Charter Academy for Independent Learning offers students makerspace, service learning in the community, online courses, electives and more. Come see for yourself!

Tell us what matters most to you! Community input is an important part of quality education for all VUSD students. Your feedback through the second part of a brief parent survey is greatly appreciated.http://www.vacavilleusd.org/lcap

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District

Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer and rub your hands together until dry.

Cover your coughs and sneezes. Use a tissue to cover your nose and mouth when you sneeze and always throw the used tissue in the trash. Remember to wash your hands after you cough or sneeze. You can also cover your cough and sneezes with your sleeves if you do not have a tissue available.

Stay home when you are ill to avoid spreading the virus to other people.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.

Influenza vaccination is recommended for everyone six months of age or older.

Source: Solano County Public Health Department

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Posted by: Jennifer Leonard, District Admin, Vacaville Unified School District